The pros and cons of Homeschooling , page 2

Most of the "cons" of homeschooling that people come up with have no basis in fact. And studies have shown that the education of the parents or the amount of regulation from the state makes no difference in the academic achievement of the child. Since more regulation doesn't seem to be beneficial, it is a bit silly to make it harder for parents to educate their children. Imagine what could be achieved if the same amount of energy was given in support of homeschooling that is given to question and doubt homeschooling.

On education:

In 1997, a study of 5,402 homeschool students from 1,657 families was released. It was entitled, "Strengths of Their Own: Home Schoolers Across America." The study demonstrated that homeschoolers, on the average, out-performed their counterparts in the public schools by 30 to 37 percentile points in all subjects. A significant finding when analyzing the data for 8th graders was the evidence that homeschoolers who are homeschooled two or more years score substantially higher than students who have been homeschooled one year or less. The new homeschoolers were scoring on the average in the 59th percentile compared to students homeschooled the last two or more years who scored between 86th and 92nd percentile.

From here

Over 74% of home-educated adults ages 18–24 have taken college-level courses, compared to 46% of the general United States population

From Beyond Graduation

Homeschool Students Excel in College

Homeschooling Research

Much more from all the links above.

Socialization:

Smedley had this information processed using the statistical program for the social sciences and the results demonstrated that the home-schooled children were better socialized and more mature than the children in the public school. The home-schooled children scored in the 84th percentile while the matched sample of public school children only scored in the 27th percentile.

In addition, several studies have been done to measure homeschoolers' "self-concept," which is the key objective indicator for establishing a child's self-esteem. A child's degree of self-esteem is one of the best measurements of his ability to successfully interact on a social level. One such study was conducted by John Wesley Taylor, using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale to evaluate 224 home-schooled children. They study found that 50 percent of the children scored above the 90th percentile, and only 10.3 percent scored below the national average.

In 2004, Dr. Susan McDowell wrote “But What About Socialization? Answering the Perpetual Home Schooling Question: A Review of the Literature” following a challenge to document the common idea that homeschoolers are not socialized in comparison to those students in public schools. McDowell, whose PhD from Vanderbilt University is in educational leadership, claims: “It’s a non-issue today. All the research shows children are doing well.”

In the public school system, children are socialized horizontally, and temporarily, into conformity with their immediate peers. Home educators seek to socialize their children vertically, toward responsibility, service, and adulthood, with an eye on eternity

From here

(emphasis above is mine)

Race:

There was no significant difference between minority and white homeschooled students. For example, in grades K-12, both white and minority students scored, on the average, in the 87th percentile. In math, whites scored in the 82nd percentile while minorities scored in the 77th percentile. In the public schools, however, there is a sharp contrast. White public school eighth grade students, nationally scored the 58th percentile in math and the 57th percentile in reading. Black eighth grade students, on the other hand, scored on the average at the 24th percentile in math and the 28th percentile in reading. Hispanics scored at the 29th percentile in math and the 28th percentile in reading.

Wealth:

the average cost per homeschool student is $546 while the average cost per public school student is $5,325. Yet the homeschool children in this study averaged in 85th percentile while the public school students averaged in the 50th percentile on nationally standardized achievement tests

found that eighth grade students whose parents spend $199 or less on their home education score, on the average, in the 80th percentile. Eighth grade students whose parents spend $400 to $599 on their home education also score on the average, in the 80th percentile

Parent Education:

found no significant statistical differences in academic achievement between those students taught by parents with less formal education and those students taught by parents with higher formal education

The findings of this study do not support the idea that parents need to be trained and certified teachers to assure successful academic achievement of their children.

Regulation:

whether a state had a high degree of regulation (i.e., curriculum approval, teacher qualifications, testing, home visits) or a state had no regulation of homeschoolers, the homeschooled students in both categories of states performed the same. The students all scored on the average in the 86th percentile regardless of state regulation.

All from here